Lifou Island, also spelled Lifu Island, also called (locally) Drehu, largest and most populous of the Loyalty Islands in the French overseas country of New Caledonia, southwestern Pacific Ocean. It is the central island of the group. Lifou rises no higher than 200 feet (60 metres) above sea level. The coralline limestone creates a fertile soil but also precludes the existence of surface streams, so fresh water can be found only in caves and wells. The inhabitants grow taro, yams, and bananas and produce copra for export. The provincial capital of the Loyalty Islands, Wé, is on Lifou’s east coast; Chépénéhé, on Sandal Bay on the west coast, is the chief town. Area 466 square miles (1,207 square km). Pop. (2004) 10,320.

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limestone coral group in the French overseas country of New Caledonia, southwestern Pacific Ocean. The group comprises the low-lying islands of Ouvéa, Lifou, and Maré; the highest point is at 453 feet (138 metres), on Maré Island. The islands were inhabited by Melanesians more...

French unique collectivity in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, about 900 miles (1,500 km) east of Australia. It includes the island of New Caledonia (the Grande Terre [Mainland]), where the capital, Nouméa, is located; the Loyalty Islands; the Bélep Islands; and the Île des...

body of salt water extending from the Antarctic region in the south to the Arctic in the north and lying between the continents of Asia and Australia on the west and North and South America on the east.